This invention relates to perfusion and temporary stents and has particular application to percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) and the ability to address intimal tears resulting from balloon dilatation.
It has been known to inflate the balloon of a perfusion catheter at the site of an intimal tear, thereby applying pressure to the vessel wall in the vicinity of the tear enabling the tear to reattach to the vessel wall. There have been drawbacks to this technique due to practical limits on the dwell time of the catheter at the site of the tear.